Solar 2006-02-26 09:40MST On one of the first clear spring days, checked out the Sun it the morning. Saw two prominences - one large arch on the northeast limb and a small spray on the west limb. Chart at: http://gallery.utahastronomy.com/main.php?g2_itemId=11018 Lunar-Planetary 2006-02-27 04:00MST Spent a few minutes in the early morning viewing a near third quarter Moon and Saturn. The Moon is at a low altitude but paradoxically the seeing was better than Saturn - which is higher and just after opposition. I had one of the best lunar observing sessions with a grab-n-go small refractors in some time. At this "reversed" illumination (usually you view the first quarter Moon with the light coming from the west instead of the east), the Alpine Valley was crisp and easily distinguishable with 60mm of aperture. North polar crater Meton put on a great "reversed" crater ray show. Usually crater rays are viewed as they rise as dramatic spikes across a dark crater floor. For Meton, this happened in reverse - the crater ray shrunk out of the crater floor. http://the-moon.wikispaces.com/Meton Mare Serenitatis was in half-darkness with the tiny 15km diameter Bessel right on the terminator. Normally not easily seen with a small aperture, it was prominent due to the lighting, as was the low central wrinkle ridge of the mare. Both smaller prominent craters Manilius (dia. 38km) and Menelaus (16km) could be distinguished. - Kurt ____________________________________________________________________________________ Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo your home page. http://www.yahoo.com/r/hs